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American-British
Glossary
Smoothing transatlantic
communication |
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Index
of Americanisms |
A
B C D E
F G H
I J
K L M N
O P Q
R S T
U V W
X Y Z
| British-American |
|
|
S |
|
American
|
British
|
| sack
lunch |
packed
lunch |
| sack time
[colloq.] (sleep) |
kip [colloq.] |
| sailboat |
yacht |
| sales clerk |
sales assistant |
| sales
tax |
VAT
(value added tax) |
| sanitary napkin |
sanitary towel |
| Santa Claus |
Father
Christmas |
| saw
(carpentry tool) |
handsaw,
saw |
| scab
(one who continues working during a strike) |
blackleg,
scab |
| scale
(weighing implement) |
scales |
| scallion |
spring
onion |
| scatological
humor |
lavatorial
humour |
| schedule |
timetable
(bus, train, plane, etc.) |
| Scotch |
whisky |
| Scotch tape™ |
Sellotape™, sticky tape |
| scouring pad |
scourer |
| scratch
pad |
jotter,
jotting block/pad, scribbling
block/pad |
| scratch
paper (bit of used paper for writing notes on) |
scrap
paper |
| scrub brush |
scrubbing-brush |
| Seaman (U.S. Navy) |
Able
Seaman (Royal Navy) |
| Seaman Recruit (U.S. Navy) |
Junior Seaman (Royal Navy) |
| seat (on bicycle) |
saddle |
| second floor
(U.S.) |
first floor
(UK) |
Second Lieutenant >
Chief Warrant Officer
(U.S. Air Force) |
Pilot Officer (Royal Air Force) |
Second
Lieutenant > Chief Warrant
Officer
(U.S. Army & U.S. Marine Corps) |
2nd Lieutenant (British Army
& Royal Marines) |
| section
(in town or city) |
district |
| sedan |
saloon car,
family saloon |
| semester
(1 of 2 study seasons in an academic year) |
term
(1 of 3 study seasons in an academic year) |
| semi
[colloq.], semi-trailer |
articulated
lorry, juggernaut |
| senior |
senior
citizen, OAP (old-age pensioner);
4th-year
student/undergraduate on 4-year course |
| Seaman Apprentice (U.S. Navy) |
Ordinary Seaman (Royal
Navy) |
|
Senior Master Sergeant (U.S. Air Force) |
Warrant Officer
(Royal Air Force) |
Sergeant
(various U.S. Army categories):
First Sergeant > Master Sergeant
> Specialist 8
> Sergeant 1st Class > Specialist 7
>
Staff Sergeant >
Specialist 6
> Sergeant >
Specialist 5 |
Sergeant (British Army) |
Sergeant
(various U.S.
Marine Corps categories):
First Sergeant > Master
Sergeant > Gunnery Sergeant > Staff Sergeant > Sergeant |
Sergeant (Royal Marines) |
Sergeant
Major > Master Gunnery Sergeant
(U.S. Marine Corps) |
Colour
Sergeant (Royal Marines) |
| Sergeant Major > Specialist 9
(U.S. Army) |
Staff Sergeant (British Army) |
| server |
waiter/waitress |
| service area (on freeway) |
service station (on motorway) |
| set the table |
lay
the tale |
| shade
[C] (on window) |
roller
blind |
| shades
[colloq.] |
sunglasses |
| shareholders'
(or shareowners') equity |
shareholders'
funds |
| shaving cream |
shaving-foam |
| sheer
curtains, sheers |
net
curtains |
| sherbet ice cream |
sorbet |
| shoeshine |
shoe
polish |
| shoestring |
shoelace |
shopping
bag (strong paper or plastic bag for
carrying goods home from store) |
carrier
bag |
| shopping
cart |
shopper,
shopping trolley |
| shopping mall |
shopping
centre |
| shot
[colloq.] (injection) |
jab
[colloq.] |
| shoulder |
hard shoulder (on motorway);
verge, grass verge (strip of land
bordering road,
path, or even flowerbed) |
| shrimp |
prawn,
shrimp |
shucks
[exclam.] (as in 'Shucks, Mr. Miller, I don't
deserve this
present. You really are too kind!') |
an
expression of modesty, regret, disappointment, and sometimes annoyance |
| side mirror
(on vehicle) |
wing
mirror |
| sideburn,
side-whiskers (hair on side of man's
face) |
sideboard |
| sidewalk |
pavement |
| siding |
weatherproof cladding
for house exteriors |
| signal tower (alongside
railroad) |
signal box |
| sink |
sink
(in kitchen); basin or washbasin (in bathroom) |
| sixteenth note
(music) |
semiquaver |
| skillet |
frying
pan |
| skyscraper |
tower
block |
| slammer,
the [slang] (jail, prison, penitentiary) |
nick,
the [slang] |
| slate
(v.) |
schedule
or arrange an event, lay something on;
adopt (nominate/propose) someone for public office |
| sled |
sledge |
| sleeping
car, sleeper |
sleeping
carriage |
| slingshot |
catapult |
| slot
machine |
fruit
machine, one-armed bandit, slot machine |
| small-game hunting |
shooting |
| smokestack
(on ship or steam engine/locomotive) |
funnel |
| smooch [colloq.] |
kiss,
hold and touch someone very affectionately |
| snap |
popper,
press stud;
cinch
[colloq.] (very easy task) |
| sneakers |
plimsolls, trainers |
| snit [colloq.]
(as in 'she went off in a snit') |
huff [colloq.],
angry mood |
| snow pea |
mangetout
[French for 'eat all'] |
| So fun!
(in U.S. 'fun' often treated as an adjective) |
Such fun! |
| soccer
(association football) |
football,
soccer |
| soccer
field |
football
pitch |
| soda |
effervescent soft
drink, fizzy drink, pop [colloq.] |
| solid pattern
(textiles and clothes) |
plain pattern |
| solitaire (card game for
lone player) |
patience |
| someplace
[colloq.] |
somewhere |
| sophomore |
second-year student/undergraduate |
| sorority |
university society for
female students |
| sound system |
hi-fi (system) |
| spackle compound |
Polyfilla
™ |
| specialty |
speciality |
|
split [slang] (run away) |
scarper
[slang] |
| sponge bath (given to
bedridden person) |
blanket bath |
| spool
of thread |
cotton
reel |
| squash |
vegetable
similar to a marrow |
| Staff Sergeant (U.S. Air Force) |
Sergeant (Royal Air Force) |
| stand
(e.g. in a market or at a trade fare) |
stall |
| stand in line |
queue |
| state fair |
agricultural
show (with funfair and entertainments) |
| station wagon |
estate
car, shooting brake |
| stick
shift |
gear
lever in vehicle with manual transmission |
| stock
(share in a company) |
share |
| stockholder |
shareholder |
|
stop light/signal |
traffic
lights |
| stopper
(in sink or bath) |
plug (in basin/washbasin,
kitchen sink or bath) |
| store
(retail outlet) |
shop |
| store
clerk |
shop
assistant |
| store
owner |
shopkeeper |
| story [pl. stories] |
storey (floor in building) [pl.
storeys] |
| stove
(kitchen
stove
with oven and grill) |
cooker |
| strainer |
sieve |
| streetcar |
tram,
tramcar |
| string beans |
runner
beans |
| stroller |
pushchair |
| student
|
learner
of any age or level, even a pupil (schoolchild) |
| studio apartment |
bedsit,
bedsitter,
bedsitting room |
| subdivision |
estate,
housing estate |
| subway |
underground (railway),
in London 'the Tube' [colloq.] |
| subway stop |
underground station |
| superhighway |
motorway |
| Sure
thing! (expressing consent or agreement) |
Righto!
Right-ho! Righty-ho! |
| suspenders
(shoulder straps to hold up men's pants) |
braces |
| sweater |
jersey,
jumper, woolly
[colloq.], sweater |
| sweet
pepper (vegetable) |
pepper |
| swell
[old-fashioned slang] (very good, excellent) |
spiffing [19th
century slang] |
| swing-arm
lamp |
Anglepoise®
lamp |
| switches
(for changing tracks on a railroad) |
points |
| switchman |
pointsman |
|
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A
B C D E
F G H
I J
K L M N
O P Q
R S T
U V W
X Y Z
| British-American |
|
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